


THE LOVERS AND THE NOSY PARENT-FRIENDS

by frnklyiero



Series: VARIATION [7]
Category: Bandom, Panic! at the Disco
Genre: Alternate Universe, Hogwarts, Ilvermorny, Love Confessions, M/M, School Dances
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-09
Updated: 2018-11-09
Packaged: 2019-08-21 03:26:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16568735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frnklyiero/pseuds/frnklyiero
Summary: "Where are the lovebirds?""Lovebirds? I thought there was turkey."Where Lindsey and Jimmy eavesdrop on Ryan's conversation with Brendon.





	THE LOVERS AND THE NOSY PARENT-FRIENDS

**Author's Note:**

> This one shot was imported from my old Wattpad account. the version you read now is the version as it was last available on Wattpad.

 

"Jeez, take it easy," Ryan smacked Jimmy's hands away before loosening his tie with a frown. "Do you seriously want to choke me?"

"This is _not_ a manifestation of one of my weird kinks, just so you know," Jimmy said with a laugh as he stepped back and allowed Ryan to turn around to look at the mirror. "Don't you look handsome." He smirked and wiggled his eyebrows.

A faint flush of red appeared on Ryan's pale cheeks, its color even more accentuated by the black dress robes he wore for tonight's event. His eyes darted away from Jimmy's smile in the mirror's reflection to his own. Suddenly, he was aware of his heartbeat, beating under his chest like the wings of a frightened bird; the sensation of the collar around his neck, tight because of his tie yet not tight enough to restrict his airflow; his sweaty palms, which he wiped on his pants - there was just too many things he had became aware of.

"I have no idea what I'm doing," Ryan admitted nervously.

"Admiring your physique?" Jimmy suggested. "I mean, you look handsome in that suit - too bad Brendon's your --"

Ryan made some disgusted noise at the back of his throat before turning to look at innocent-faced Jimmy. He had gone pale in a matter of seconds. "I don't know if I can do this," he said, voice higher than his usual pitch. "I don't think I can dance with Brendon tonight."

Jimmy stared at him. "Ryan," Jimmy began, placing both hands on Ryan's shoulders. "We've practiced this hours ago."

"I kept _stepping_ on your toes!"

"Yeah," Jimmy winced at the memory of one too many _Episkey_ spells he had to cast on his bruised toes due to Ryan's horrendous lack of ability to slow dance for the Christmas Ball. "But hey, I doubt Brendon would want you to fret over this. He'd want you to have fun."

"I don't feel reassured but I'll pretend I am," Ryan said.

Jimmy sighed and rolled his eyes before making Ryan face the mirror and then slung an arm around him. "You see that person in the mirror? The one with dress robes the color of darkness --"

"You're wearing black dress robes too --"

"Let me finish, son," Jimmy shushed his best friend before continuing on. "Yeah, that's George Ryan Ross the Third, who happens to be the hottest Ilvermorny student around --"

Ryan made a choked noise of disgust at the back of his throat.

"And he has the sickest dance moves." Jimmy carried on as if Ryan hadn't said a thing. "He's gonna dance his way into Brendon's heart - and his pants too - and he'll definitely do so with style."

Ryan simply gave Jimmy a weary look, as though he didn't know whether he should let Jimmy run his mouth or slap him, but sighed instead. "Okay, whatever," he said before glancing at the clock on his nights.

It was nearly eight 'o clock, the time when Ilvermorny's annual Christmas Ball would start. The whole day had been a jumble of nervousness and dread on Ryan's part because he was woefully unprepared to engage in any sort of social activity tonight and that he didn't want to fuck things up.

Lindsey and Jimmy had came to Ilvermorny, due to a student exchange program, and they were more than happy to help Ryan out for tonight. More than happy meaning they got overly excited because they had heard many things about Ryan's roommate, Brendon Urie, and leapt at the opportunity to assist Ryan in wooing Brendon - not that Ryan needed help on that but they just wanted to the honor of "playing a crucial role in Ryan and Brendon's romance."

It was a good thing Brendon wasn't around whenever Lindsey and Jimmy would start fawning over Ryan's interactions with his roommate. It was also a good thing Brendon had to help set up the Dining Hall downstairs and didn't have sufficient time to come back upstairs to change. At least Brendon wouldn't have to know how much Ryan's best friends from Hogwarts shipped him and Brendon so much.

"We should probably go now," Ryan said.

"Ooh, someone's excited." Jimmy was wearing that idiotic smirk of his that Ryan wished he could cast a hex on.

* * *

"Please try not to interfere with tonight," Ryan pleaded. He had pulled his two best friends to one corner to talk about how he needed space to hang out with Brendon and how they needed to respect his wishes. "Not that I'm ungrateful that you two have really tried but I need to do this myself," he added in a serious manner.

"Do what?" Lindsey asked; she wasn't paying attention to Ryan but was keeping her eye out for Brendon for Ryan's sake.

"Brendon, obviously," Jimmy snorted and Ryan turned red in the face.

"I am _not_ hooking up with him tonight," Ryan said pointedly although his voice wobbled at the end. He scowled in response to their teasing grins and continued in a measured but mildly irritated tone. "I am going to dance with him and talk about how I want to be committed in a relationship with him and probably have a romantic walk around the school or maybe have some roast beef or turkey with Chadwick's cranberry sauce."

"Or you could pull Brendon to a corner in the greenhouse and --" Jimmy was elbowed in the abdomen by Lindsey, who had forced on a frighteningly wide smile and was waving at someone. Jimmy had his mouth open, ready to tell her off, when he realized what she was doing and forced the same smile on his face.

So Ryan followed their gazes and felt his heart stop for moment.

Of course he'd seen Brendon many times today. Of course he'd seen Brendon in his dress robes. Of course he had no reason to feel like he ran a whole marathon in a span of less than half of a second. But seeing Brendon here tonight, walking over with that stupid smile of his that made Ryan's knees go weak, was enough to make Ryan feel weightless inside.

"What's up, you guys? I'm really glad you could all make it to the party!" Brendon gave Lindsey a hug and then shared a complicated-looking handshake. Then he turned to face Ryan. "Hey, so I managed to set up the sound system like Patrick asked. Have you seen him anywhere?" he asked.

In that moment, Ryan had never felt so relieved and infuriated. Yes, at least Brendon wasn't doing anything that would make Lindsey and Jimmy release cries similar to that of pterodactyls for Ryan, but couldn't Brendon say something nice? Like, _nice shoes_ , or _I like your hair_. Not that Ryan was begging for compliments, in fact, he didn't _need_ compliments to feel appreciated.

"You okay there, Ryan?" Brendon asked with a hint of concern as Ryan's face looked torn between smiling and scowling.

"Yes, I am. Thanks for asking," Ryan answered curtly and he could sense Lindsey and Jimmy glaring at him. "And Patrick should be looking after the catering now," he added, hardly bothering to keep himself from sounding sullen.

Jimmy and Lindsey peered at him curiously while a thoughtful frown formed on Brendon's face. "Come to think of it," Brendon began, tapping a finger to his chin. "Weren't you assigned to help out with the light show later?"

"What?"

Without giving Ryan a chance to respond further, Brendon said, "Of course you were." He sighed and shook his head. "No wonder Bennett was asking where you went - _as if_ I have some tracking device on you." Excusing both him and Ryan, Brendon led Ryan away from his friends through the crowd that was gathering in the Hall.

The place, like Hogwarts, had been decorated to match the festive event. Christmas trees lined the sides of the Hall while the ceiling was enchanted to give the illusion of falling snow. Everyone was milling about with greetings.

"I was never assigned to help with the light system," Ryan said when they reached the stage where a few students were making last minute checks.

A crooked grin, the kind that had become endearing to Ryan, formed on Brendon's lips. He laughed, eyes lighting up with amusement. "Yeah, I know. I just wanted an excuse to be with you." The affectionate way he spoke, in addition to the doe-eyed gaze he was giving Ryan, made the boy's heart flutter. "You look handsome," he said.

Ryan could feel his face heat up and his mouth to curve into a smile on its own accord. His eyes traveled down Brendon, noting the color of the boy's dress robes (wine red), the distance between them (approximately a feet away), then back at Brendon's face. "Well, you look dashing tonight as well," Ryan said when he reached out to pat down the lapels of Brendon's robes - he needed an excuse to touch.

 

"Y'know, I'm starting to think that no matter how long you've been exposed to American accents, your British accent doesn't, like, leave."

"It's Bristolian, mind, but it's considered mild where I'm from."

" _Is what I'm saying the same as your accent?_ " Brendon attempted to speak the way Ryan usually spoke, which made Ryan cringe.

"You're doing it wrong. It sounds like an offfensive mockery of a bastard of the Queen's English and West Country accent."

Brendon laughed. "So, not very posh?"

"Hardly," Ryan said. After fussing over Brendon's lapels, he gave a quick glance around before looking at Brendon. All of a sudden Ryan's heart started to beat faster the moment he thought of asking Brendon whether he wanted to be in a committed relationship with Ryan. "Anyway, do you want to dance with me or something?"

"I thought you'd never ask!" Brendon exclaimed excitedly and then led Ryan by the hand to the dance floor.

* * *

 

"Will you just look at them?" Lindsey sighed dreamily from where she sat at the table with Jimmy, watching Ryan and Brendon dance together. "Look at my tiny son - all grown up and trying to woo his man."

"Nothing ... important happened?" Jimmy questioned in between bites of his food.

"Uh, they stole a few kisses - not on the lips but on the cheeks or the forehead - but nah," Lindsey said while she squinted to make sure she didn't miss any details. "He isn't very big on PDA, is he? Ryan, I mean."

"Maybe there's too many people around? He says it's different when him and Brendon are alone."

"Oh, save the details. I may be invested in his love life but I wouldn't want to know _that_ much."

* * *

 

The hours of till midnight were growing shorter every second Ryan wasted on withholding his thoughts, which only did nothing but inflate his anxiousness on the situation. He hadn't made so much a progress and neither could he make himself to try. Every time he did, the words would get stuck in his throat so he'd cover it up by brushing his nose against Brendon's neck.

Brendon seemed to be enjoying himself at the dance, which was a good thing. He was also in a very touchy-feely mood, showering Ryan with affection and enthusiastically accepting Ryan's shows of affection. "So, do you wanna stay till the end of the dance or are you ready to hit the sack?" he asked.

No way in Hell was Ryan going to waste precious hours of the night chickening out. "Can we just --" he broke off and stopped slow-dancing with Brendon. "Look, there's something I want to talk to you about."

Brendon's expression immediately turned into a concerned one. "Is something wrong?" he asked with a frown. He hadn't said anything regarding the matter but he had noticed Ryan going pale a few times for no particular reason; every time that happened worry struck him only to be replaced with relief when Ryan would go back to normal.

"Yes. I mean, no!" Ryan shook his head before making a kind of frustrated noise at the back of his throat. He covered his face with a hand in embarrassment. His heart was colliding against his ribcage repeatedly now. "Can we go outside?"

"Uh, sure." The words had barely left Brendon when Ryan suddenly grabbed him by the wrist and led him out of the Hall.

* * *

 

"Wait, Jimmy --" Lindsey said all of a sudden. "Where are the lovebirds?"

"What lovebirds? I thought there was turkey." Jimmy frowned, too engrossed with his fifth helping of roast beef.

"What? No. Ryan and Brendon!" Lindsey had sat up and was looking around frantically.

Jimmy belatedly realized what was happening and began to panic. "Shit, where'd they go?"

"You were supposed to keep an eye on him!"

"I was, but the food looked great --"

"Oh, _for Merlin's sake_ \- !"

* * *

 

Ryan had led Brendon away from the Great Hall to outside. They were now walking one of the paths that led to one of the courtyards that was deserted at the moment. Snow had blanketed the place, from the ground to that statue of William the Pukwidgie in the middle of the now-frozen fountain.

"So, what was it you wanted to tell me?" Brendon asked, toeing at the layer of snow on the ground.

"Uh." Ryan glanced around to make sure no one was nearby. He turned to face Brendon, his face going red. "It's important."

"Important enough for you to want to talk to me in a deserted courtyard? In the moonlight? While it's cold out?"

"Y-yeah, I guess." Ryan drew a shaky breath before he wrapped his hand around Brendon's. Immediately, Brendon held his hand back, their fingers intertwining with one another. This gesture helped calm Ryan down a bit from the apprehension that was eating away at him the whole day.

Brendon had produced his wand and was trying his best to cast a spell that could warm the both of them but it started making these odd, crackling noises and orange sparks so he stopped. Instead, he conjured a Patronus Charm. From his wand, a silvery white light formed, which coalesced into the form of a wild hare. Grinning, Brendon nudged Ryan. "Bring out yours," he prompted.

"O-oh, okay." Ryan's clumsy hand reached into his robes before he pulled out his wand. Focusing, he uttered, " _Expecto_ _Patronum_." The same silvery white light formed at the tip of his wand, forming a vague shape of a four legged animal before it became a basset hound Patronus. 

The hound sat down and scratched its ear when Brendon's hare darted playfully around it. Perking its ears up, the hound got to its feet and gave the hare a lighthearted chase around the courtyard, baying. Brendon let out a sound of delight when the hare jumped on Ryan's lap and the hound on his before they disappeared.

Taking this opportunity, Ryan drew a breath and plucked all his free-floating courage within him to speak. "Brendon?"

"Hmm?" Brendon faced him.

Ryan's face heated up at once. "Look, I just thought I should let you know how I really feel about ... _us_. We haven't found the time to properly sit down and talk about what's really going on between us. I mean, it probably doesn't matter that much in the big picture but I wanted to know what this thing going on between us is called - like are we exclusively dating each other and occasionally sleep with each other now, or are we something else entirely that can't fully be defined in a label? Because it's been bugging me out for awhile and --"

"Ryan, slow down. Jesus fucking Christ, you're talking faster than me on Red Bull," Brendon said, placing his hands on Ryan's face. "Breathe."

"I love you," he blurted. "And I want to be yours. I want to be in a committed relationship with you. And I'm sorry if that sounded needy and clingy but that's the truth. I mean, I can't see myself in a couple of years by myself - you're always in the picture, no matter when I picture it. I --" All the words he'd been spewing out suddenly sounded incomprehensible in his head. " _Please_."

The absence of response Brendon was giving Ryan in that mere span of three seconds was enough to make Ryan feel as if he'd failed to do something right. He was certain he'd be crushed by the feeling of being rejected in the next moment when Brendon let out a laugh. And another. And another.

Ryan was about to ask what was so amusing when Brendon's fingers caressed his cheek with such tenderness, it reminded him of the night they had actually slept with each other. There had been sweat, moans and sloppy kisses but Ryan's favorite part was when Brendon touched him; not in the desperate way that screamed of desire for gratification but in the gentle way that spoke of love. 

Ryan had drawn a sharp breath.

"If you think for one second that I don't feel the same way you do," Brendon began, leaning forward. Ryan's breaths went shallow the moment Brendon's lips brushed his; he waited for the kiss. "Suck a cock, Ross," Brendon said.

He must've either lost his mind to nerves or he was amused that Brendon had somehow perfected Bristolian for that moment - he didn't quite remember. But what he did remember was Brendon's lips on his and the warm feeling of content and security expanding in his chest.

* * *

 

"They did it!" Jimmy whispered loudly, mouth open wide. "They - _wow!_ "

Lindsey had her fist jammed in her mouth to prevent herself from screaming while the two of then watched from a window that faced the courtyard a floor above. "I-I have no words to describe how --" she sniffled, wiping her eyes delicately with a finger.

"Our tiny son is all grown up now, can you believe it?"

"No, obviously. Otherwise I wouldn't be crying here and messing up my mascara."

"Okay, but it looks like they're heading back to their dorms now."

"They deserve some alone time. C'mon, let's get back to the Dining Hall and see if there's still some more roast beef."

 


End file.
